A family of white ducks graces St. Mary's Lake
Across the way
Columba Hall on the "Island"

"The beautiful blue sky is arching above me like a dome made from lapis lazuli; the clear surface of the lake reflects the cheerful splendor of the sky; the manifold greens of the nearby bushes, like the fine cedar, tulip, and oak trees of the forest on the opposite side, decorate the lake, which now is viewed as the font; and the grass slope with its decoration of far-western flowers, which stretches all the way to the lake, serves as the carpet to the imposing house-chapel in God's wonderful temple of nature."

-- German missionary's description of St. Mary's Lake and the newborn Indian baby he baptized there during his stay in the Log Chapel on campus in 1840.

For more photographs, and excerpts from his diary, go to A Cave of Candles: The Story Behind the Notre Dame Grotto, Chapter 22a -- An Archival Treasure.

© 2001 by Robert F. Ringel.
All rights reserved.